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A classical singer is hoping to become the second Coventry success story on this year’s The Voice.

Karl Loxley will take on the enormous challenge of belting out opera classic Nessun Dorma - most famous for being sang by the legendary Pavarotti - on Saturday night as he tries to bag himself a spot in the next round of the popular BBC talent show.

Much more used to busking in front of shoppers in Stratford-upon-Avon, the 24-year-old has never quite got his break in show business having studied musical theatre at Guildford School of Acting.

Despite auditions for West End musicals and even putting himself forward for other talent shows, it never quite fell in to place for Karl and he is hoping The Voice could be his time to shine.

The Co-op worker from Balsall Common near Coventry said: “I’ve tried out for shows like this before but had never thought of auditioning for The Voice.

“I mainly do busking in Stratford which I’ve done for over a year and have got quite a big following. They told me I should get some stuff recorded and I was at a studio in Birmingham doing that when the bloke who owns the studios had a call from The Voice.

“They asked if he had anyone who was a bit different and he said ‘I’ve got someone in the studio right now’ and before I knew it I was doing an audition for the show.

“The night before I couldn’t sleep at all and then I was up at 6am on the day and my audition didn’t take place until 10pm!

“I was constantly trying to keep myself awake and then when you’re going to the stage you have to walk up some stairs. It was so quiet from the studio that I was saying to myself ‘don’t fall on the stairs as everyone will hear it’.

“When I got on to the stage, the way I was breathing was as if I had been sprinting in the Olympics!”

Should Karl get through, he will join Coventry singer Letitia George in the battle phase after she earned a place on Ricky Wilson’s team earlier in the series.

The 24-year-old restaurant manager from Willenhall was the very first contestant seen on stage in the 2015 series and after her rendition of Sam Smith’s Stay With Me, she picked Kaiser Chiefs frontman Wilson as her mentor over Sir Tom Jones and new judge Rita Ora.